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Volusia woman arrested in bank fraud scheme

Published: Tuesday, February 12, 2013 at 6:12 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, March 7, 2013 at 6:59 p.m.

A 65-year-old Daytona Beach Shores woman was arrested this week after police say she was operating a bank fraud scheme in Volusia and Flagler counties and the Orlando area.

Pamela Lehman Costello was picked up Monday afternoon by deputies, records show. She was wanted on a South Daytona police warrant charging grand theft in a March 2012 incident at a SunTrust bank. She was being held Tuesday on $10,000 bail at the Volusia County Branch Jail.

According to an Orlando Police Department report, Costello is also a suspect in at least four other fraud incidents at BB&T bank branches in Daytona Beach, Orange City, Palm Coast and Lake Mary.

Her suspected accomplice in the South Daytona case is 30-year-old Anthony Dewayne King.

South Daytona investigators said Costello was in possession of an Atlanta woman's driver's license and used it as her identification when she carried out a bank transaction at the South Daytona SunTrust bank in March 2012.

On March 28, 2012, Costello showed up at the bank on South Ridgewood Avenue and told a teller that her name was Charlotte McKinnon, police said. Costello pulled out a driver's license with McKinnon's name on it. The teller thought Costello's signature on the withdrawal slip did not match the account signature cards McKinnon had on file, the report shows.

The teller asked Costello to sign her name a couple of times on a sheet of paper. Costello said it was difficult for her to write because of her arthritis. The teller thought the signatures were close enough to the signature cards, which she said were old.

Costello asked to withdraw $7,800 and be given to her as a cashier's check. The suspect also said she wanted the check made payable to her son, Nathan Thompson, the report shows.

That transaction occurred at 3:42 p.m. At 4:10 p.m. that same afternoon, a man walked into the SunTrust bank on Palmetto Avenue in Daytona Beach and said his name was Nathan Thompson. He presented a driver's license with that name on it and asked to cash the check for $7,800, police said.

After the incident occurred, South Daytona investigators were at a loss concerning the identity of Costello and her accomplice, a black man in his late 20s or early 30s, the report shows.

Detectives, however, did have surveillance video of Costello and the second suspect taken at the two SunTrust branches, the report shows.

Then, a month later, in April 2012, South Daytona investigators were contacted by Orlando police. They told South Daytona detectives that the woman in the surveillance videos had done the same thing in Orlando at another bank, the report shows. She was identified as Costello. Orlando police also informed South Daytona that Costello's accomplice was King, the report shows. It is not known if King has been arrested.

<p>A 65-year-old Daytona Beach Shores woman was arrested this week after police say she was operating a bank fraud scheme in Volusia and Flagler counties and the Orlando area. </p><p>Pamela Lehman Costello was picked up Monday afternoon by deputies, records show. She was wanted on a South Daytona police warrant charging grand theft in a March 2012 incident at a SunTrust bank. She was being held Tuesday on $10,000 bail at the Volusia County Branch Jail. </p><p>According to an Orlando Police Department report, Costello is also a suspect in at least four other fraud incidents at BB&T bank branches in Daytona Beach, Orange City, Palm Coast and Lake Mary. </p><p>Her suspected accomplice in the South Daytona case is 30-year-old Anthony Dewayne King. </p><p>South Daytona investigators said Costello was in possession of an Atlanta woman's driver's license and used it as her identification when she carried out a bank transaction at the South Daytona SunTrust bank in March 2012. </p><p>On March 28, 2012, Costello showed up at the bank on South Ridgewood Avenue and told a teller that her name was Charlotte McKinnon, police said. Costello pulled out a driver's license with McKinnon's name on it. The teller thought Costello's signature on the withdrawal slip did not match the account signature cards McKinnon had on file, the report shows. </p><p>The teller asked Costello to sign her name a couple of times on a sheet of paper. Costello said it was difficult for her to write because of her arthritis. The teller thought the signatures were close enough to the signature cards, which she said were old. </p><p>Costello asked to withdraw $7,800 and be given to her as a cashier's check. The suspect also said she wanted the check made payable to her son, Nathan Thompson, the report shows. </p><p>That transaction occurred at 3:42 p.m. At 4:10 p.m. that same afternoon, a man walked into the SunTrust bank on Palmetto Avenue in Daytona Beach and said his name was Nathan Thompson. He presented a driver's license with that name on it and asked to cash the check for $7,800, police said. </p><p>After the incident occurred, South Daytona investigators were at a loss concerning the identity of Costello and her accomplice, a black man in his late 20s or early 30s, the report shows. </p><p>Detectives, however, did have surveillance video of Costello and the second suspect taken at the two SunTrust branches, the report shows. </p><p>Then, a month later, in April 2012, South Daytona investigators were contacted by Orlando police. They told South Daytona detectives that the woman in the surveillance videos had done the same thing in Orlando at another bank, the report shows. She was identified as Costello. Orlando police also informed South Daytona that Costello's accomplice was King, the report shows. It is not known if King has been arrested.</p>